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PROCEEDINGS 

OF THE 

CINCINNATI COLONIZATION SOCIETY, 



^ 



ANNUAL MEETIN G, 



JANUARY 14, 1833. 



^ubUsijctr b^ ®cKe¥ o£ Qe pianaflcvs. 



CINCINNATI: 

PRINTED BY F. S. BENTON. 

MDCCCXXXUI. 






FOURTH ANNUAL MEETING 

OF THE MEMBERS OF THE 

CINCINNATI COLONIZATION SOCIETY. 



Agreeably to previous notice, the members of the Cincinnati Colonization Soci- 
ety, held their annual meeting, in the First Presbyterian church, on Monday, the 14th 
of January, 1833. 

The President of the Society being absent, Judge Burnet took the chair, and H, 
Starr, Esq. acted as Secretary. After the organization of the meeting, the Rev. J. 
Gallaher addressed the throne of grace ; after which, George Graham, jr. read the 
annexed report. 

When the reading of the report was concluded. Rev. Lyman Beecher, D. D. of- 
fered the following resolution, accompanied by appropriate remarks. 

Resolved, That the efforts of the Colonization Society demand the confidence and 
cooperation of philanthropists, patriots, and christians, as a wise and successful ef- 
fort, approved of Heaven, to facilitate the education and emancipation of slaves, and 
the abolition of slaveiy, at home ; and by the introduction of Christianity, and civil- 
ization, and civil liberty, and the extinction of the slave trade, in some measure to 
repay injured Africa for her protracted and unutterable sufferings and wrongs. 

Rev. James Gallaher then offered the following resolution, with remarks upon the 
importance of the subject. 

Resolved, That it is the duty of the people of this country, to use ever}' exertion 
to establish the means of education among the colored people, after their removal to 
Africa. 

The following resolution was offered by Dr. J. K. Sparks, with a brief history of 
Mr. Findlay's exertions. 

Resolved, That the thanks of this Society be tendered to Robert S. Finley, Esq. 
for the well directed zeal he manifested to establish and sustain the Cincinnati Coloni- 
zation Society, and the able and eloquent manner in which he has advocated the prin- 
ciples of the American Colonization Society, while agent of the parent institution. 

On motion, the members proceeded to elect officers for the ensuing year, when the 
following persons were chosen. 

REV. B. P. AYDELOTT, D. D. President. 
HON. JACOB BURNET, frst Vice President. 
REV. J. L. WILSON, D. D. second Vice President. 
M. WILLIAMS, Treasurer. 
GEORGE GRAHAM, Jr. Secretary. 

Managers. 

James Foster, Rev. A. Mahan, 

John P. Foote, E. Fisher, 

P. S. Svmmes, Rev. J. Gallaher, 

R. S. Fjnley, Dr. J. K. Sparks, 

Moses Lyon, George W. Neff, % 

Dr. J. C. Finley, H. B. Funk, 

Rev. S. W. Lynd, E. Jolley, 

B. Storer, H. Starr, 
M. D. Evans. 

The following gentlemen were appointed a Committee to procure subscriptions and 
receive donations to the Society. 

First Ward.— By. J. K. Sparks and E. Williams. 
Second Ward. — Heniy B. Funk and Dr. James C. Finley. 
Third Ward. — Bellamy Storer and Peyton S. Synnnes. 
Fourth Ward.~^Geoige Graham, Jr. and S. Burrows. 
Fiftfi Ward. — Moses Lyon and James Foster. 



REPORT 



The Committee appointed to report on the condition of the 
Cincinnati Colonization Society, and the progress and prospects 
of the parent institution, beg leave to submit the following 
remarks. 

The Cincinnati Colonization Society was organized in No- 
vember, 1826, with the object of acting as auxiliary to the 
American Colonization Society, at which time, about one hun- 
dred and twenty members had subscribed the constitution, and 
agreed to pay one dollar yearh^ to the Treasurer. 

A regular collection of dues, and remittance to the parent 
Board, continued until 1829, when the absence of some of the 
principal officers, and other causes operating, the members 
failed to hold their annual meeting, and to collect their dues. 
In 1830, several attempts were made to revive the Society, and 
to replenish the treasury; but owing to the removal from the 
city of many of its members, the withdrawal from the sub- 
scription list of others, and the objection made by some to pay 
annually, these attempts failed. Since that time, the man- 
agers, with a few who considered themselves members, sup- 
ported the existence of the institution, by contributions, and by 
i*bceiving collections taken up in the worshipping assemblies of 
our city; thus presenting to the friends of the system, a me- 
dium for the transmission of funds and donations to the parent 
Board. In 1831, the managers appointed a Committee to re- 
ceive donations, for the purpose of assisting R. S. Finley, Esq. 
the agent of the parent Board, in despatching a vessel from 
New Orleans, with western emigrants for the Liberia colony, 
Tq promote this object, the Committee paid over to the agent, 



between four and five hundred dollars, in cash and merchan- 
dize, which they received from individuals in this city and col- * 
lections previously made in the neighboring towns. Dr. Shane, 
one of our members, with a zeal and benevolence worthy of 
the highest commendation, volunteered his services and accom- 
panied the expedition to Liberia, where he remained until 
he saw the colonists comfortably provided with a permanent 
residence. 

Thus you will perceive, that this Society has been an impor- 
tant auxiliary to the parent Board; and although the records 
for the last three years, do not furnish a system of regular order 
in its proceedings, yet the aggregate amount paid, is equal to 
the preceding three years. Add to this, the collections made 
in our churches, which did not pass through this Society, in 
their transmission to the parent Board; the very generous sub- 
scription often thousand dollars, made by Mr. McClure, a gen- 
tleman living in the vicinity of our city; the contributions by 
the Miami Colonization Society, and the Juvenile Society; and 
the well known services of Robert S. Finley, Esq. as agent, 
who is a resident of this city, and it Mall be admitted that 
this section of Ohio appreciates the importance of promoting 
the objects which are to be gained by the colonization of the 
free blacks on the coast of Africa. Yet we have not done as 
much as might have been done, nor are our efforts equal to the 
importance of the objects which we wish to accomplish; but 
enough has been done to encourage us to advance, and to cheer 
the patrons of this benevolence. 

The success of the parent Society has fully demonstrated 
that the system is expedient and practicable; and every day 
adds proof that public sentiment at large, will cooperate ^\»R^ 
us, so soon as suflicient light is given to all classes of society to 
enable them to understand our intentions. As an evidence of 
this, we refer to the acts of thirteen of our states, expressing 
their approbation of the institution, by resolutions passed in 
their legislative halls; and many of them recommend the Soci- 
ety to the patronage of the general government. 

The state of Maryland has appropriated two hundred thou- 




sand dollars, annually, to enable her free blacks to emigrate to 
Africa. In the Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee legislatures, 
a similar law failed — in the first, by a division on the proper 
mode of appropriating the funds; in the second, by a small 
majority against it; and in the Tennessee legislature, a bill 
passed the lower house this session, which was rejected in the 
senate by a majority of one vote against an appropriation. 

The southern states, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama, 
see the importance of aiding this system, and large collections 
are now making by the auxiliary Societies in those states. The 
Society at Natchez, last season sent to Liberia two free colored 
men, for the purpose of ascertaining the true state of the col- 
ony. Since their return, and the reception of the favorable 
report which they made, an unusual spirit for colonizing has 
been exhibited in that neighborhood. In New Orleans, the 
Society has met with unexpected success. A contribution not 
exceeded by any other, was lately made by Judge Workman, 
of that city, who ordered in his will, the payment of ten thou- 
sand dollars to promote the colonizing objects. In every sec- 
tion of the union, the collections have been increased during 
the last year, and a great many new auxiliary Societies formed. 
Forty-eight subscribers are now on the list, to raise, according 
to Gerrit Smith's plan, one hundred thousand dollars, in ten 
years. With these prospects, the parent Board has been ena- 
bled to enlarge the sphere of its operations, and to extend its 
usefulness. Three expeditions are now preparing to sail early 
in the spring — one from Baltimore, one from New Orleans, 
and one from Norfolk. These vessels will carry eight hundred 
emigrants, which, added to an expedition lately despatched from 
Savannah, will increase the number of colonists at Liberia, to 
four thousand. ^> 

The receipts of the Society, during the last yCT^were thirty- 
two thousand dollars. It is expected that this year's return 
will be much larger, as the agents in the different states have 
been more successful in obtaining contributions, and several 
thousand dollars having been received from Mr. Cresson, the 
agent now in England, forming auxiliary Societies in that king- 



dom. In addition to pecuniary considerations, the Society has 
the approbation of many of the most eminent men of this age. 
Amongst others, Lafayette, James Madison, and Chief Justice 
Marshall, addressed letters to the parent Board, which were 
read at the last annual meeting of the Society, in which the 
two latter strongly recommended the institution to the patron- 
age of the general government, and an appropriation of funds 
for the purpose of speedily accomplishing the objects for which 
it was created. It is also well known that Jefferson was one 
of the early advocates of the colonizing system. 

Whilst enumerating the particulars of the parent Society, 
during the past year, your Committee would do injustice to the 
friends of humanity, were they to pass without notice, the 
death of one whose character is known to all — one who was, 
not long ago, the president of the American Colonization So- 
ciety, the last surviving signer of the Declaration of Indepen- 
dence, and one of the first to patronize our institution. We 
allude to the venerable Charles Carroll, of Carrollton, the great 
advocate of republican institutions and human liberty, who had 
aided our common country with all his energies, in her first 
struggles for independence, and who had lived to be satisfied of 
the success of our experiment at republican government, at the 
moment when a second and not less interesting case for the 
exercise of his generous and noble exertions was presented, 
and he survived long enough to behold the principles practi- 
cally applied, in the colony at Liberia. For the public services 
rendered to his country, his influence in favor of emancipation, 
and the many virtues which adorned his private character, we 
cherish. an affectionate remembrance; and may his example be 
an incentive to our exertions, in fearlessly advancing to that 
point to which benevolence leads us, and where hope promises 
to crown us With success. 

Permit us now to direct your attention to the colony, and 
endeavor to ascertain whether the seed which we have sown, 
has fallen upon a barren soil, where tares will spring up and 
choke it, or Mdiether it has fallen upon a rich soil, which will 
produce an abundant harvest. 



in this sketch of the colony, we will furnish you with extracts 
from authentic documents and other respectable sources of 
information. 

The colony of Liberia extends from Gallinas river to Kroo 
Settra, a distance of two hundred and eighty miles along the 
western coast of Africa, and stretching back indefinitely into 
the interior. It is watered by several rivers, the soil extremely 
fertile, and abounds in all the productions of tropical regions. 
The climate is favorable to the health of the emigrants, the 
deaths of the last year having been less than four per cent, of 
the population ; which is a less mortality than the aggregate 
yearly report of deaths in our large eastern cities. The ther- 
mometer ranges from sixty to eighty degrees, in all seasons. 

The population of the colony is now about three thousand, 
composed of free blacks, emigrants from the United States, and 
some recaptured Africans, all of whom pursue the occupations 
of freemen — governing, judging, teaching, and protecting 
themselves; worshipping our God, believing in our Savior, 
and making known the gospel of our salvation to the heathen 
around them. In addition to this population, it is believed that 
about fifteen thousand of the natives are under the influence of 
the colonial laws. 

The present form of government was established in August, 
1824, and was submitted to the assembled colonists for their 
adoption. A court of justice has been established, composed 
of the agent and two judges, taken from among the colonists. 
This court exercises jurisdiction over the whole colony. It as- 
sembles monthly at Monrovia, and since its organization, no 
crime of a capital nature has been presented to it, nor has any 
such crime been committed by any one residing within the 
bounds of its jurisdiction. 

The Board of Managers of the Society appoint the agent or 
governor, who is a white man; all the other officers are men 
of color, the most important of which are elected annually by 
the colonists. The government, in its details, is republican, 
and designed expressly to prepare the colonists ably and suc- 
cessfully to govern themselves. Much is done to promote the 



s 

cause of religion. iThere are three churches — a Methodist, a 
Baptist, and a Presbyterian. Divine service is regularly at- 
tended in them on the Sabbath, and on Tuesday and Thursday 
evenings. In these societies, Sabbath schools have been estab- 
lished, to which all their most promising young men have at- 
tached themselves, either as scholars or teachers. 

Captain Abels, who visited the colony in 1831, and spent 
thirteen days at Monrovia, says, ' My expectations are more 
than realized; I saw no intemperance, nor did I hear a profane 
word uttered by any one. I know of no place where the Sab- 
bath seems to be more respected than in Monrovia.' 

The colonial agent remarks, in one of his communications to 
the parent Board, that ' Many of the recaptured Africans, who 
on their arrival were scarcely a remove above the natives 
in civilization, are at present as pious and devoted servants of 
Christ as you will find in any community. As to the general 
morals of the colonists, I consider them much better than those 
of the people of the United States; that is, you may take an 
equal number of inhabitants from any section of the union, 
and you will find more drunkards, more profane swearers and 
Sabbath breakers, than in Liberia.' 

By the position of the colony, great commercial advantages 
are enjoyed. It is the central point in a long extent of sea- 
coast, and relations of trade may be established between it and 
the interior. The colonists have sustained, and now carry on, 
an active and lucrative trade with the natives, disposing of 
goods supplied by this country and England, for dyewood, ivory, 
hides, gold, palm oil, and rice. This trade is rapidly increasing, 
the exports of the last year having amounted to one hundred 
and twenty-five thousand five hundred and forty-nine dollars, 
and the merchandize on hand, on the 1st January, according to 
Gov. Mechlin's report, was valued at forty-seven thousand dollars. 

The town is also becoming a place of resort for the natives 
of the Condo country; by which means the colony will be 
made known to the natives of the interior. 

It is a port of considerable importance for foreign vessels, 
no less number than fifty-six having been recorded in the 
books of the port officer, for entrance, during the past year. 



The colonists own four vessels for the accommodation of their 
own commerce, and to prevent slave vessels from communi- 
cating with the natives. Many of the colonists are turning 
their attention to agriculture, and the cultivation of coffee, in- 
digo, cotton, &c. which are the spontaneous growth of the 
country. A plantation of twenty thousand coffee trees, owned 
by Mr. Waring, is nearly completed. 

Large acquisitions of territory have been made this season, 
by purchase and by treaties with the natives. The last addi- 
tion was by treaty with one of the native kings, who had vio- 
lated the laws of the colony by selling slaves, some of whom 
had escaped, and found protection in the town of Caldwell. 
The king demanded his property, and on the refusal of the 
governor to give them up, he marched his army to attack the 
emigrants. The governor met him with a part of the colonial 
volunteers, and defeated him, which resulted in the surrender 
of his territory to the colony, to purchase their good will. 
Many of the tribes in the neighborhood have been induced by 
the governor, to cultivate Indian corn, potatoes, &c. for the 
supply of Monrovia, which proves successful in enlisting them 
in favor of the settlement, and establishes habits of useful 
industry. 

In addition to these statements, we offer an extract from the 
report of Lieut. B. Page, commanding U. S. schooner Boxer, 
made to the Secretary of the Navy, and by him submitted to 
the present congress. After speaking of the prosperity of the 
schools, the condition of the colony, and enumerating the pro- 
ducts of the soil, he observes: ' When it is taken into consid- 
eration, that such valuable articles of trade as have been enu- 
merated, can be cultivated at an expense of five bars, or five 
cents per day, and sufficient rice for the daily subsistence of 
each native employed; that these natives do not work like 
slaves, but are a strong, laborious people, who might be brought 
out of their habit of giving up labor, after the farming season 
is over, and employing their time in singing and dancing; 
and that these articles are in demand in our country and in 
Europe, there can be but one inference drawn, and that is, 

B 



10 

that in proportion as an industrious farming interest is estab- 
lished, who are disposed for agriculture and its peaceful pur- 
suits, the commerce of the colony Vv-ill flourish, and keep pace 
with their exertions. I have inquired as to the state of the 
health of the colony. The report has been favorable, and I 
am credibly informed by Dr. Todson, that he loses hardly in 
the proportion of four out of a hundred of those who are taken 
with the country fever, through which ordeal all have, sooner 
or later, to pass. With all the advantages that have been enu- 
merated, it would be natural to expect to hear of the general 
contentment of the inhabitants; and so far as my personal 
observation has gone, I have found this to be the case. That 
you may see how much one house has done of the business 
above stated, I enclose you a statement which I have procured 
from the house whose name it bears. 

' Waring &, Taylor. 
'Sales — camwood, oil, ivory, &c. . . . f 80,000 
Merchandize, the produce of foreign coun- 
tries, on hand, Jan. 1, 1832, .... $15,000' 
For further notice of the colony, w^e refer to the letter of an 
EngUsh officer, who visited the western coast. 

* The colonists are a comely and well formed race of negroes, 
neat and clean in their persons, modest and civil in their man- 
ners, and comfortable in their dwellings. 

' Their houses are well built, ornamented with gardens and 
other pleasing decorations, and on the inside, are remarkably 
clean; the walls well whitewashed, and the rooms neatly 
furnished. They are very hospitable to strangers, and many 
English officers on the station have dined with them. At 
meals, the man of the house generally said grace, in which he 
was joined by the family. The complete success of this colony 
is a proof that negroes are, by proper care and attention, as 
susceptible of the habits of industry, and the improvements of 
social life, as any other race of human beings; and that the ame- 
lioration of the condition of the black people on the coast of 
Africa, by means of such colonies, is not chimerical. Wherever 
the influence of this colony extends, the slave trade has been 



11 

abandoned by the natives, and the pursuits of legitimate com- 
merce established in its place. They not only live on terms 
of harmony together, but the colonists are looked upon with a 
degree of respect, by those of their own color, and the force 
of their example is likely to have a strong effect in inducing 
the people about them to adopt it.' 

These accounts in relation to the prosperity of the colonists, 
are fully confirmed by Dr. Shane, in his letter to the secretary 
of the parent Society. About five years ago, a newspaper was 
established at Monrovia, which is now issued weekly, and sup- 
ported by three hundred subscribers. This paper is entitled 
tlie ' Liberia Herald,' and edited by a colored man, who has been 
indefatigable in his exertions to make this medium of commu- 
nication not only useful to the colonists, but serviceable to for- 
eign nations, in giving a regular account of arrivals and de- 
parture of vessels, the condition of the interior of the country, 
and the appearance of slave vessels as they are reported on 
the coast. Extracts from this paper are frequently made in 
the United States, one of which we offer you, as a specimen 
of the intelligence of the editor, taken from the number dated 
Sept. 7, 1832. 

' Growth of our Country. — Whoever has perused our columns* 
from time to time, for the last four months, must have perceived 
that our commerce is daily on the increase. With Great Bril- 
ain, our intercourse is almost weekly, and if her vessels touch 
not for trade, they generally do to procure refreshments an<i 
kroomen, or gain information of what vessels have proceeded 
leeward. Should our port continue as open, we look forward 
in the course of a few years to the extension of our commerce, 
along the seaboard, and in the interior. In fact, we know of 
no place that will be able to dispute the palm. 

' Sierra Leone and the European settlements to the leeward, 
are on the decrease, in every respect ; and if they were not so, 
they could offer but feeble competitions against our infant repub- 
lic, nurtured, as we trust she will be, by the protecting arm of 
our government. And while we indulge in those pleasing 
hopes, we wish not to forget the fond and indulgent parent, 



12 

who has heretofore watched over our infant progress with ma- 
ternal solicitude. Let our interests be better understood by 
our citizens generally, and the ample page of knowledge more 
and more unfolded to the opening genius of our rising youth, 
and if any of the present generation survive fifty years hence, 
their tale of the early settlement of the colony would hardly be 
credited. 

' With our growth and increase, every man is deeply inter- 
ested, and has it in his power to contribute, by precept or ex- 
ample, towards so desirable an object. We have been led into 
these remarks from an activity and bustle which have appeared 
in the business part of our city, during the greater part of these 
rains. Formerl}-, during the rains (and the case is still the 
same on the Gold coast), our harbor was visited but seldom, 
once every seven weeks or so, by European or American 
vessels. 

'American masters, as they become better acquainted with 
the coast and trade, pay but little regard to the seasons, or to 
the many stories circulated at home, of the unhealthiness of 
the climate, or the semi-annual descent of the rains. God, in 
his providence, has allotted a portion of sunshine and rain, of 
winter and summer, to every land, and foolish are they who 
expect to behold any country all sunshine or all rain.' 

Your Committee presume to congratulate the members upon 
the highly prosperous state of the colony, in all its relations. 
There is an evidence in these facts stated, which must convince 
the greatest enemy to our system, that the man of color in Li- 
beria, restored to all the human rights, feels the importance of 
his situation, and acts as one of those who is to assist in chang- 
ing the character of millions of his fellow-beings; one who is 
to assist in laying broad and deep the foundation of a mighty 
republic, by which a great practicable good is to be achieved 
for himself and his posterity. Under such impressions, the 
colonists are now operating, and we can no longer doubt the 
reformation in habits, and the change which has taken place 
in the feelings of the slave, from imbecility to activity, manli- 
ness, and high anticipations of future usefulness. These are 



13 

the feelings which governed the pilgrims, when they landed at 
Plymouth.; and as we venerate their characters, so will the 
descendants of the pilgrims who landed at Monrovia, remem- 
ber them^ as the fathers of their republic in Africa. 

This brief history of the progress of the Society and of the 
colony, must be flattering to the friends of the system; but 
there are other inducements equally encouraging to the mem- 
bers, and promise additional aid to the colonizing system. 
Circumstances which are now developing, must operate with 
powerful influence in favor of our plan; and the steady 
march of public opinion in the old world, in favor of human 
rights and free government, will give, at no distant day, an 
increased action to our Society. 

The late change in the sentiments of the people of Great 
Britain, in favor of a more liberal government, is also deeply 
connected with the liberation of the slaves of British subjects; 
and as this question is submitted as a test, in electing members, 
perhaps the first act of a reform parliament, may be the liber- 
ation and colonization in Africa, of all the slaves of the British 
colonies. 

The French government have also awakened to this impor- 
tant question ; and now, the liberal party in France, through 
the medium of the 'Christian Morals Society,' are petitioning 
the chamber of deputies to liberate all the slaves in the French 
colonies, or to establish a legal tariff, which shall determine the 
prices of slaves, differing according to the circumstances of age, 
sex, or capacity, but of which the maximum shall be fixed by 
law, according to which, the master shall not be allowed to 
refuse liberty to his slave. This Society, by circulars, entreats 
the people to address from every part of France, numerous 
petitions, covered with signatures, asking for this law, and at 
the same time, an appropriation of money, sufficient to execute 
on a large scale, these plans of redemption. 

Not only France and England, but Germany, and the other 
nations of Europe, mingle their wishes with ours, for the wel- 
fare of our colon}'. In the British parliament, it has become 
a subject of debate, and a question discussed by her ablest 
statesmen. 



14 

The late and important discovery of the course and entrance 
of the river Niger into the Atlantic ocean, furnishes a new fea- 
ture to the American Colonization Society, and opens a new field 
for the enterprising of all nations. This stream, as if it had been 
doomed to share the ' obscurity which covers the land to which 
it ministers,' had heretofore concealed its sources and its mouth, 
from the eager curiosity of modern science. The repeated 
failures which had already attended the various attempts to 
discover the true Niger, had almost convinced modern geogra- 
phers that success was impossible, and that this great secret of 
nature was reserved for future generations to disclose. At this 
propitious period of the world, when the friends of humanity 
were looking with intense anxiety for a communication with 
the dark interior of this benighted land, the problem is solved 
by the servant of the enterprising and unfortunate Clapperton; 
thus opening into this unknown continent, an easy communi- 
cation, by which the friends of humanity may introduce their 
system of colonization, the christian missionary plant the stand- 
ard of his Savior in its centre, commerce extend her benefits to 
its remotest points, and the historian create a new era in the 
annals of the country. These late discoveries do not represent 
the interior as pervaded with a monotonous gloom. Throughout 
the picture, there are bright lights interspersed, which ' shine 
more conspicuously from the shadows with which they are 
surrounded.' In the midst of the wildest woods and moun- 
tains, there are scenes of pastoral beauty; and amid the moral 
darkness, there shine forth virtues which would do honor to 
human society in its most refined and exalted state. A flow of 
affection and hospitality characterize and pervade the society 
of many of the tribes, and a degree of knowledge and intelli- 
gence has been found in the interior, far different from the 
common opinions formerly promulgated. 

Witli these prospects before us, what is our duty as members 
of the Colonization Society? As freemen and friends of our 
country; as friends of mankind and members of the American 
republic; as worshippers of a God who created all men 
free, we do not hesitate to say, that you will respond to us, — 



15 

goon! liet us remove from our national flag the only stain 
which soils it. Let us, as a nation, cast off this curse, which 
was entailed upon us in our infancy, without our consent; 
which has grown with our growth and strengthened with 
our strength, until it threatens our existence. Let us place 
on the original soil, the descendants of those who w^ere con- 
veyed from it as slaves, under the hellish system of the slave 
trade. But in restoring the offspring, let them carry with 
them the principles of freemen, and the knowledge and power 
to exercise them. Let Christianity accompany them, and let 
the church of God be built and blessed amidst the wilderness; 
and like the pebble thrown upon the smooth surface of the 
lake, let the circles of its influence extend to the remotest cor- 
ners of Africa. Let us have our names entered upon the his- 
torical page of our country, as the instruments by which the 
traffic in human blood has been abolished from the world. Let 
it be said, that we were the first to return science and religion 
to that country which gave {he world the first knowledge of 
letters and the arts, but which has been for centuries deprived 
of science by the inhumanity of their fellow-men; for wherever 
the slave vessel has been anchored, and the white man put his 
foot upon the soil, social intercourse has been destroyed, the 
country blackened with crimes, and man taught ' to tremble at 
the sight of his fellow-man.' 

There was a time when a portion of this continent was the 
seat of the arts. Nothing now remains of her greatness but 
her architectural monuments in the valley of Egypt, which still 
afford evidence of the expanded views of her former kings. 
The city of Thebes, with its hundred gates, once visited by 
the learned of all nations, now seen only by the pilgrim or the 
traveller, for the purpose of taking from its cemeteries the 
specimen of a mummy, or some other evidence of antiquity, 
with which he may be able to astonish the present generation, 
and gratify public curiosity. May we not hope that our colony 
will have an influence in disclosing some of the secrets of past 
ages, and giving more correct views to future generations on 
the history of Africa? 



16 

Should you object to the means of the Colonization Society, 
in achieving this work, we answer, that we do not expect this 
Society to do all; but it will form the medium of communication 
between this nation and Africa, when the slave states will find 
it their interest to change their slave population for the more 
profitable cultivation of their lands by free labor, and when the 
nation will be induced from popular opinion, to undertake the 
work. It will show to the world that we are sincere in that dec- 
laration of our charter, that 'all men are free and equal, and of 
right ought to be so;' or if you justify your passiveness by indulg- 
ing an idea that a crisis has arrived, when political opinions and 
civil disturbances shall endanger the existence of this republic: 
to this we answer, that if the present alarming commotions in 
the southern part of our union, shall extend gradually and 
cause the decay of this fair fabric, raised by our fathers, ce- 
mented with their blood, and consecrated to liberty; or if the 
shock shall be so great as to shake it to its foundation and 
detach the parts, future history will find the cause of this disso- 
lution, not in the unequal operations of a general law, but in 
the curse of slave labor. The discontent arises from causes at 
home — the loss in the political balance of the nation, of polit- 
ical weight, which has been produced by an emigration to free 
states from the slave states; the unprofitable product of slave 
labor, when in competition with free labor; the diminution of 
the value of their land and staples, by an increase of the same 
article in the new states, under a more economical system of 
cultivation; consequently, the planters have more difficulty in 
obtaining those luxuries of life in the old states, which they 
procured with scarcely an efifort, whilst they had the monopoly 
of the southern trade. In reviewing the history of some of 
the slaveholding states, it will be evident to the most common 
observer, that there is a radical evil existing, which is deeper 
than the causes assigned by South Carolina. The unfortunate 
revolution in Virginia, produced by the fanatic Nat Turner, 
brought out the expression of the members of her legislature 
upon the evils of slavery. They discovered that the time had 
passed when this national defect could be concealed by reserve* 



17 

The question of slavery was no longer whispered in their halls; 
it became a 'legitimate subject of debate,' and they fearlessly 
declared the facts to the world. They acknowledged the 
wide-spread alarm which this insurrection had occasioned, and 
public opinion was strongly in favor of a preventive for future 
calamities of a similar nature. Virginia was not the only 
state affected. South and North Carolina were also alarmed. 
The idea that ' men will not always be slaves,' became to them 
an apparent truth; and the most gloomy anticipations of the 
future were evinced in the general anxiety, when it was an- 
nounced that a few slaves had congregated at any particular 
point. The time is fast approaching when the nation will 
be called upon to act by general law for the general good. 

Temporary relief may be afforded for a while, by the repeal 
of the tariff laws, and the sacrifice of our protective system; 
but the body politic will never be healthy, until the cause of 
the disease is removed. 

If your Committee have convinced you that the plan of col- 
onizing the free blacks is practicable, or if you believe that 
serious danger, arising from the evils of slavery, threatens our 
country; and if by the efforts of this Society, we can add another 
pillar to support and perpetuate our republic, then the act itself, 
to us is a sufficient reward. On the other hand, if we fail for 
want of patronage, or if civil commotions and anarchy should 
obscure the bright star of our liberty, which has been the 
admiration of the world for half a century; and if our free 
institutions should sink in the vortex, which has swallowed all 
other republics, we will have the consolation to know that a 
scion from the tree has been planted on the coast of Africa, 
which may at some future period overshadow the continent, 
afford shelter to the friend of human rights, and a resting-place 
to the genius of our country. 

Your Committee therefore recommend the continuation of 
the Cincinnati Auxiliary Colonization Society, and increased 
efforts in promoting the objects for which it was organized. 

George Graham, Jr.) q^^^^,,, 
James xi. Sparks, ) 



TREASURER'S REPORT. 



George Graham, Jr. Treasurer, 

To Cincinnati Colonisation Society. Dr. 
1829. "' 

Aug. 4. Received from churches, collections 4th July, and from collector, 28,50 

24. Cash, from M. Brooks, Methodist Society, - - - - 12,00 

Mr. Kemper, Walnut Hills church, 6,75 

1831. 

Jan. 12. Cash from Elizabethtown Society, ..... 4^37 

April 25. « J. Hall's subscription to Mount Pleasant Society, - 10,00 

J. Austin's subscription, .---... j qO 

July 6. Cash from Mr. Cist, collection in Presbyterian church, - - 18,35 

Rev. S. Johnston, Episcopal church, , . - - . 10,00 

Betliel Society, 10,50 

13. Harrison Colonization Society, 20,00 

Aug. 15. Williamstown do. do. ...... 4 50 

Batavia do. do. 13^50 

17. Milton do. do. 10,00 

Newberiy do. do. 6,00 

Sept. 22. Fourth Presbyterian church, 6,31 

Oct. 18. James Lyon, of Pleasant Ridge, 10,00 

Oxford Colonization Society, 80,00 

Second Presbyterian church, ...... 17,92 

Nov. 2. Collected from Managers, and sundry citizens, to assist w^estem 

expedition, 180,00 

Received collection, by Dr. J. K. Sparks, - - - . 1975 

1832. ' 

Nov. Received from Mr. Burnet, Rev. S. Johnston's collection, . 10,00 

$478,55 

Cr. 
1829. 

Nov. By cash remitted parent Society, . _ _ . . 47,00 

1831. 

Nov. 4. Cash paid Dr. Shane, for R. S. Finley, to assist vv^estem expedition, 418,75 

$465,75 
Balance, cash in Treasurer's hands, $12,80 

Also, a gold watch-seal, received in collection, in 1828. 

George Graham, Jr. Treasurer. 
Cincinnati^ Jan. 14, 1833. 



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